Wending our way from the Austrian-Hungarian Empire in Europe to the Cornfields of the South Canaan, Pennsylvania, and United States of America.

The Civil War battle in western Maryland that killed 22,000 men—and served no military purpose. For generations of Americans, the word Antietam—the name of a bucolic stream in western Maryland—held the same sense of horror and carnage that the date 9/11 does for Americans today. But Antietam eclipses even this modern tragedy as America’s single bloodiest day, on which 22,000 men became casualties in a war to determine our nation’s future. Antietam is forever burned into the American psyche as a battle bathed in blood that served no military purpose and brought no decisive victory. This much Americans know was true. What they didn’t know was why the battle broke out at all—until now. The Cornfield: Antietam’s Bloody Turning Point tells for the first time the full story of the struggle to control “the Cornfield,” the action on which the costly battle of Antietam turned. Because Federal and Confederate forces repeatedly traded control of the spot, the fight for the Cornfield is a story of human struggle against fearful odds, men seeking to do their duty, and a simple test of survival. Many of the firsthand accounts included in this volume have never before been revealed to modern readers or assembled in such a comprehensive, readable narrative. At the same time, The Cornfield offers fresh views of the battle as a whole, arguing that two central facts doomed thousands of soldiers. This new, provocative perspective is certain to change our modern understanding of how the battle of Antietam was fought and its role in American history.

“The best account of the Battle of Antietam” from the award-winning, national bestselling author of Gettysburg and Chancellorsville (The New York Times Book Review). The Civil War battle waged on September 17, 1862, at Antietam Creek, Maryland, was one of the bloodiest in the nation’s history: in this single day, the war claimed nearly 23,000 casualties. In Landscape Turned Red, the renowned historian Stephen Sears draws on a remarkable cache of diaries, dispatches, and letters to recreate the vivid drama of Antietam as experienced not only by its leaders but also by its soldiers, both Union and Confederate. Combining brilliant military analysis with narrative history of enormous power, Landscape Turned Red is the definitive work on this climactic and bitter struggle. “A modern classic.”—The Chicago Tribune “No other book so vividly depicts that battle, the campaign that preceded it, and the dramatic political events that followed.”—The Washington Post Book World “Authoritative and graceful . . . a first-rate work of history.”—Newsweek

What stories do we tell about America’s once-great industries at a time when they are fading from the landscape? Pennsylvania in Public Memory attempts to answer that question, exploring the emergence of a heritage culture of industry and its loss through the lens of its most representative industrial state. Based on news coverage, interviews, and more than two hundred heritage sites, this book traces the narrative themes that shape modern public memory of coal, steel, railroading, lumber, oil, and agriculture, and that collectively tell a story about national as well as local identity in a changing social and economic world.

Edward and Elizabeth are young and in love; but their plans are not to be. She is thrust into a strange new world that requires all the Faith and dignity she possesses. Years thereafter, Edward's little brother David and his friend Jimmy begin a journey west, searching for Elizabeth. On the way they discover themselves. The story is a 'feel good,"" satisfying adventure.

Intro -- Contents -- List of Maps -- Preface -- 1. Maintaining the Initiative -- 2. The West Woods -- 3. The Sunken Road -- 4. The Afternoon -- Notes -- Selected Bibliography -- Index.

Real-life stories will take you back to the time when families stood shoulder to shoulder, working against Depression, dearth and drought to build a better life together.

It is 1910 and Philadelphia is burning. The last place Spring wants to be is in the run-down, colored section of a hospital surrounded by the groans of sick people and the ghost of her dead sister. But as her son Edward lays dying, she has no other choice. There are whispers that Edward drove a streetcar into a shop window. Some people think it was an accident, others claim that it was his fault, the police are certain that he was part of a darker agenda. Is he guilty? Can they find the truth? All Spring knows is that time is running out. She has to tell him the story of how he came to be. With the help of her dead sister, newspaper clippings, and reconstructed memories, she must find a way to get through to him. To shatter the silences that governed her life, she will do everything she can to lead Edward home.

This is the story of a boy born during the Depression. He was ashamed of being raised by two different sets of aunts and uncles for twelve years. He moved from his hometown to Philadelphia just as he was starting school and was on welfare those six years. Then he returned to his hometown and worked for the last six years of school to earn money for his keep and future life. After graduation, he moved to Detroit, where he went to Dodge trade school for four months. He was then transferred to Chrysler Highland Park plant, into the tool room. While there for two years, he went to Chrysler Institute of Engineering three nights a week for three hours. In January of 1943, he went into the armed forces. After basic training, he then joined an all-voluntary unit during WWII and fought at twenty to one hundred miles behind the German lines in teams of four in eight armored cars (M-8s). Their missions were to blow up ammo and fuel depots and cut communication lines. Each team had a separate area to cover in front of the Third Army. They raised so much havoc that the Germans assigned eight squads of SS troops to hunt them down and kill them. He had sex with German girls to gain information. To complete his missions, he did not care if he lived or was killed. It is a must to read this telling story of an abused child and a crazy soldier.